You Don't Know Until it's Gone
by mybatmanshoes
Summary: Derek was pretty sure he'd been doing the right thing by leaving Stiles alone...well...mostly, but he might not think so when Stiles is gone and they don't have any idea where he went. In fact he might have to find him and rectify the situation. AU- Stiles and gang are 18 and graduating at the beginning. Slow burn, use your words Derek. warning for sexual assault.
1. Chapter 1

**Derek**

Derek growled quietly under his breath. Quietly, because his pack was asleep nearby and he didn't want to wake them because…well because of the fucking reason he was growling. It didn't seem to matter that he took all the precautions in the world, all he could think about when he closed his eyes was that _damn kid._ He could practically _feel _his mouth on the long, pale neck; see the marks that would be left standing out against white skin. He could sense the long fingers that would dig into his back muscles, as he…fuck. _This_ is what had Derek reduced to practically humping his mattress, lost in a fantasy like some hormonal teenager. That kid had hammered a crack in Derek's self-control, and he didn't like it one bit, and fully intended to take it out on the unknowing party the next time they saw each other which…Derek froze, the ache in his sweatpants and the sweat on his forehead becoming overwhelmingly apparent as a familiar heartbeat approached his territory.

Shit.

Apparently they were going to be seeing each other way ahead of schedule.

**Stiles**

"Stiles, hurry up man!"

Scott was a lacrosse field ahead of him, and Stiles glared at the back of his best friend's head. He almost missed the days when Scott couldn't outrun him in anything-the days when Stiles had to carry around an extra inhaler for him, just in case they walked to fast or something, because Scott pretty much never had his inhaler if he was going to need it. It was just one of those things that Stiles had always done for Scott, and he missed it even if it made him feel a teeeeeny bit guilty for wishing his best friend had defective lungs.

"Stiles, come _on_!"

Okay seriously? Stiles was not some mutant wolf man and did not have the capacity to go faster than humanly possible, given the fact that he was, in fact, human. He would have made an exceptionally witty comment as well, except for the fact that they were kinda running for their freaking lives.

Again.

It had been a wonderfully normal day. Stiles had woken up, made breakfast for him and his dad, forgotten to take his meds because he was distracted by something that he thought he saw out his window… Of course it had turned out to be nothing, but that had been happening a lot recently due to his lack of sleeping during acceptable sleeping hours…and it was kind of more than ironic right? That he couldn't sleep because he was distracted which led to him being tired and therefore more easily distracted which led to him forgetting to take his meds which ultimately was going to him being even more distracted…Definitely irony right there, but that's kind of what his life was based on these days.

It was, for example, ironic that they were running away from something potentially dangerous toward Derek Hale, whom Scott kept insisting was not his Alpha.

This pack of theirs was something of a dysfunctional family unit, and that was on a good day, but Stiles was happy to be included, so he wasn't about to start complaining…not where he could be overheard by certain sourwolves anyways.

Before they had embarked on this mad dash however, Stiles had made it through a painstakingly long day of classes. Painstakingly so, because literally every tiny movement or noise had drawn his eye, and he was fairly sure that he was lucky to have made it through the day without looking like he was possessed. Scott said he hadn't succeeded in doing so, but Allison had swatted him in the shoulder and told Stiles that he was doing just fine. So he was going with Allison's opinion on this one- she was slowly but surely making up for having turned his best friend's mind to jelly, and Stiles was beginning to think he had a great new friend…even if her presence made it painstakingly obvious that Stiles had never even kissed a girl. Or boy for that matter. Though he'd thought about both on plenty of occasions.

Again with the irony, Stiles might not even have noticed anything if he hadn't be so unfocused. His eyes had a tendency to be everywhere if he was having a hyper day, and if they hadn't been he might not have picked up on that man. Stiles was _pretty _sure this guy had been sitting in a car on his street this morning, and then he had seen him lurking in the school parking lot throughout the day. Stiles' overtired brain was starting to snap into action when he and Scott were making their way to the parking lot after weights- then Stiles had seen the man in the office on their way out. The closed office. At that moment it was like somebody had hit an "engage" or "super survival skills activate" button in his brain, because he practically dragged Scott to the jeep in record time, and already had his phone dialing Allison's number when he put the keys in the ignition.

"Stiles, what the hell? What's going on?" Scott was confused…oh yeah, probably didn't remember to tell him what was going on.

He shot Scott a panicked look as the phone was ringing in his ear, and just as Allison answered and they were pulling out of the lot, Stiles caught a glimpse of the man running out of the school and to his car.

"Hey Stiles! What's up?"

"There is somebody following me and I don't know why but they've been here all day and I have Scott with me and I know he's going to want to you to be super careful so I called you but I think I forgot to tell him what's going on first so he's looking at me like I'm crazy and I'm kinda freaking out right now and if my dad sees the way I am currently driving or even hears about it I am literally going to be grounded for my entire life."

Run on sentences were a signature of Stiles', especially when he was nervous, and that one hadn't even made the top ten strangest in the last few months.

"Go to Derek's, Lydia and I are at my house so we'll be fine." Of course Allison was no doubt referring to the arsenal of weaponry hidden around her fortress of a house, and Stiles forgot to say goodbye in his freaking out mode as he hit the button and shoved his phone in his pocket.

"Dude, why are you being followed?" Scott had a way of asking totally brilliant questions and Stiles really wanted to smack him in the side of the head.

"I don't know, but I'm thinking it probably has something to do with the fact that I hang out with werewolves since _nobody ever followed me before._"

Of course, about a mile away from the pack's "den" as Stiles liked to call it, his poor baby had had enough of high speeds (being anything over 50mph) for the day, and decided to take an unscheduled nap. That is how they had ended up running through the woods, and even with his lacrosse training (not to mention all the practice he's had running for his life recently) Scott was already out of sight ahead of him. He figured that yelling anymore, not knowing where his strange stalky admirer was, would be a bad idea, so he just kept running as fast as he could and "umphh."

A strange sound left Stiles' mouth as he had the wind knocked out of him and fell straight back onto his ass in the dirt, "OW what the fu…" and his words abandoned him as he stared up at a glowering, and very half naked, Derek Hale.


	2. Chapter 2

**Derek**

There were two heartbeats, and they were _fast, _and getting closer. Although the heartbeat Derek recognized as Scott's was getting closer much quicker, which meant…

A growl ripped through Derek's chest, rousing his pack from their sleep as his eyes flashed bright red. He leapt across the room and yanked open the door just as Scott came into the clearing, partially wolfed out and clearly not thinking (not that that was particularly shocking to Derek, Scott not being the sharpest pup in the wolf pack), but also clearly alone. _Well fuck_. Derek sprinted out to meet him in the clearing, his eyes flashing and his teeth starting to sharpen as he grabbed Scott's shoulder,

"Where is he?" Derek growled, trying and failing to sound less than concerned. But why shouldn't he be concerned? The kid was a member of his pack wasn't he? That's good enough reason to want to know where he is! Scott just looked at Derek blankly, not understanding for a moment.

"Stiles, Scott! **Where is Stiles?**", and Scott seemed to snap back into reality, his wolfed out parts fading as he looked around frantically.

"Oh shit, shit I think I lost him I don't know what happened! He just said he was being followed and we had to run and…" his words trailed off as Derek's eyes became engulfed in red, and he let his fangs grow out and his nails sharpen.

"Get. Inside. Now." the words sounded in a booming frequency, an alpha order that was not to be refused, even if Scott hadn't acknowledged him yet. Scott hurried past him and into the dilapidated house, as Derek sniffed the air and listened for the sound of Stiles' heartbeat-_there._

He was off in an instant, bounding on all fours as he let himself take more of a wolf like shape for the speed it gave him. He could tell when he was about to reach Stiles, could hear the teen breathing rapidly, and smoothly leapt into an upright sprint, shaking of some of his wolfier parts as he did. He was running a little slower, getting a grasp on Stiles' exact location, when the scent hit him. _Shit. _Usually Stiles' scent was...but this…the sweat pouring off of Stiles had magnified his scent tenfold- it was enough to disorient Derek as he tried to get a grip on the feelings of lust he was having, which is why he didn't realize when Stiles was getting so close.

"uumph"

And all of the sudden Derek was looking down at Stiles, sprawled on the ground and smelling like that, and all Derek could think about was how much he _wanted _him. This annoying as hell kid that couldn't shut up and was constantly throwing himself into trouble, and Derek wanted to rip off his clothes and fuck him in the dirt. Wanted to make Stiles _his, _and his erection was straining against his sweatpants at the very thought.

_Mine._

**Stiles**

"OW what the fu…"

Stiles was looking up at Derek and realizing, not for the first time, how ridiculously attractive he was. Granted, not the best time and place to be doing so, but hey, hormones don't necessarily discriminate and the adrenaline pumping in his veins was making him hornier than he had been…ever. Or that could be because of the Greek god of sex staring down at him, but again, Stiles didn't exactly care. His tongue ran over his lips nervously, a habit that he couldn't seem to shake, and he heard Derek let out a strained growl.

That's when he noticed the massive bulge in Derek's sweatpants, and his own breath hitched a little as he ran his tongue over his lips again, this time more slowly and _potentially_ more than slightly on purpose. He had just wanted to see if Derek would make that noise again, but suddenly Stiles was slammed further back into the dirt. His arms were pinned to his sides by Derek's hands, a heavy body covering his and a knee shoved between his thighs. Stiles' own arousal was making itself pretty damn apparent as Derek glared down into his eyes,

"Are you _messing_ with me?" Derek growled, his eyes glowing and his fangs glinting. Stiles probably should have started cowering in fear, or groveling or something, and he was pretty sure he wasn't supposed to do what he did next but…

Stiles pushed his chest forward to crush into Derek's, his arms still pinned by his sides but his torso straining upward and allowing him to slam his mouth into Derek's . The wolf man was clearly taken by surprise, but didn't make any move to stop him as Stiles flicked his tongue between Derek's lips, encouraging them to open. With a strangled sound that was some sort of cross between a growl and a moan, Derek took control of the kiss, pushing Stiles back into the ground and invading his mouth with a very insistent tongue, entangling his own and refusing to let his attention wander anywhere else. He could feel Derek's erection growing stiffer next to his own, as he sucked and bit Stiles' bottom lip and let out another one of those soft growl-moans, which Stiles replied to with a moan of his own.

And then it was abruptly over.

Not just a break or something, just immediately done, like Derek was no longer on top of him or even remotely near him done. _What the fuck?_ He was 5 feet away, practically glaring at him with his glowing red eyes,

"Go meet the rest of the pack; I'm going to see if you were really being followed."

Just like that, Derek was jogging into the forest leaving Stiles sitting alone in the dirt with a throbbing erection that was pretty much the only thing that made him certain that what just happened hadn't been a teenage fantasy of some sort.

Because he was pretty sure he had had a very similar fantasy before, but it most _definitely_ had ended a lot better… and a lot less sore.

**Derek**

_MINE!_

His head was still screaming at him as he ran deliberately away from Stiles, trying not to breathe through his nose at all as he tried to figure out exactly what had just happened. He'd thought the brat was taunting him, mocking his arousal, but then Stiles had _kissed _him, and the scent and the feeling of their erections together and the kiss…Derek has almost lost it.

He would have been gone completely, but Stiles' moan had reminded him that this wasn't a daydream. He was literally about to fuck an 18 year old kid, who he was pretty sure was a virgin, in the dirt, and he had to get out of there before he ended up hurting him and hurting their pack. Stiles had looked confused, although Derek wasn't sure if the confusion was about his abrupt ending or about the kiss itself, and he couldn't risk staying to figure it out.

He came up on Stiles' jeep, abandoned on the side of the road, and halted. He could smell somebody strange all over it, and he didn't like the smell even though he was sure he had never smelled whoever it was before. Whatever was going on was not good, and he needed to make sure his pack was ready in case they were attacked.

He gave one last look around and made sure he had committed the strange scent to memory before turning around and sprinting back towards his house, and his pack.


	3. Chapter 3

**Stiles**

He just sat there for a while, which yeah, wasn't his best idea ever but seriously- he had just kissed Derek. _Derek._ And the thought was still very appealing to him, despite the fact that the asshole had just left him alone in the middle of the woods. Not that that exactly surprised Stiles, because seriously, the guy was not the best with social interactions. Also not saying that their brief impromptu make out session had been a normal social interaction, but…Stiles sighed and slowly pushed himself up off the ground, dusting off his pants.

What had just happened?

I mean, Stiles knew what had happened but he couldn't figure out exactly why or how…because Derek had been clearly aroused, so Stiles had just kinda hopped on the lust train and yeah… Derek had probably just been in the middle of something, maybe with Erica- that thought made him feel more than slightly irrationally jealous though, so he shoved it away. He'd just have to see if Derek mentioned it or anything, or repeated the events…

A repeat would be nice.

Despite the fact that his…*ahem* "family jewels" were aching fiercely in his skinny jeans. So not only had his fashion choices hindered his running ability, but now they were going to chafe too. He would have to consult Lydia about that, since she was the one who had picked them out…though he might only mention the running part, since even though they were only friends now, he'd still spent a good portion of his life in love with her. It might be a tad bit awkward. Awkward like when he'd had a serious conversation with her about his chances, and she had informed him that she was almost certain that his sexuality was going to lead him in a different direction. That was over a year ago, and even if he did now consider his sexuality to be a bit fluid, Lydia would always have a special place in his heart. So she didn't need to hear about his testicles, in any context.

Oh yeah, the being stranded in the woods thing- Stiles had momentarily forgotten that he was standing in the forest, at night, alone, and the teensiest bit lost after the hullabaloo with a certain wolf man. His dad would be disappointed to hear that in all the years he and Scott were in boy scouts they had actually been way more interested in tying knots and building forts than learning how to navigate effectively in the woods. Stiles patted his pockets searching for his phone, swearing softly when he realized he didn't have it. He must have left it in the car, but he was pretty sure that since most of his friends thought he was with Scott, and Scott probably thought that Derek had gotten to him, and Derek had run off in the darkness to be moody and mysterious, that probably nobody was trying to get ahold of him. Except maybe his dad, because oddly the sheriff didn't think that his son hanging around with a bunch of werewolves was exercising good personal safety habits. Since finding out about Scott and everybody, he had a tendency to text a lot more frequently, and to be significantly more worried than before if he didn't receive a timely response. Even if his son had legitimately fallen asleep while on the school bus when his jeep had been broken, and the jackass bus driver had freaking LEFT him there in the bus lot. He'd woken up to police sirens and a ridiculously bright flashlight shining in his face. He'd have to borrow a phone and call home when he got to the house. Sighing, Stiles shoved his hands in the pockets of his hoodie, picked a direction that looked right, and started walking.

**Derek**

He didn't go back to the pack immediately. He was going to, but then he started arguing with himself about how he was going to act when he got back and saw Stiles. Probably would be best to pretend it didn't happen, but he doubted that the kid would let it go- he wasn't the type. Add that to the fact that Derek was not inclined to let it go…he was confused. He hated being confused. The idea that this 18 year old was controlling some part of him did not sit well with Derek, but at the same time he knew that he wanted to feel what he had been feeling while they kissed again. Goddamn feelings, getting in the way of everything he had worked to achieve here- a strong pack, and a stable environment- but he still wanted Stiles.

What was bothering him the most was that he didn't know what the kid was thinking. Was there a reason behind why he'd kissed Derek? Did he feel anything for him, or was he just playing around? He thought it could easily be either, because Stiles had a way of confusing people deliberately, but he was never intentionally cruel…DAMMIT. He needed more time to calm down, and to regain his composure, so he went to pick up pizza for everybody. It was out of character, and he knew the pack would be confused by it, but he needed an excuse to not go straight back and see Stiles running his tongue over his lips.

Not something that he could handle at the moment, at least not without taking it way too far.

He got back to Stiles' jeep with the pizza, and jump started it with the tool he'd made Stiles keep in the back. The jeep died often enough that having an emergency jump start was handy, and the pack had given it to Stiles as part of their Christmas present the year before.

He drove down the hidden back road and parked the jeep a few hundred yards away from their den- his old family house had been made suitable to live in with the help of the pack over the course of the summer. It wasn't pretty, but it beat an abandoned train station. And had a kitchen. Also a bathroom.

Derek walked into the house with his stack of 5 pizzas, and was met by 7 pairs of anxious eyes. Erica, Isaac, Boyd, Jackson, Lydia, Allison, and Scott were gathered around a small coffee table, they looked nervous and intense. Scott jumped up as soon as the door shut behind him.

Derek made a warming sound deep in his throat, as Scott invaded his space too quickly and with unknown motives,

"Where's Stiles?"

Scott was looking at him expecting an answer, along with the rest of the pack.

Derek closed his eye and searched the area for Stiles' heartbeat, hearing nothing to indicate that the kid had even made it back anywhere near the house.

"FUCK."

****okay I lied before cuz life got hectic, but the next chapter will be up soon within a few days!****


	4. Chapter 4

**Stiles**

Yeah…he was definitely lost. Stiles had no idea where he'd gone wrong, but it had probably just been messed up from the beginning. It was weird that nobody seemed to be looking for him though, because honestly, a pack full of werewolves with supersonic hearing and other various amplified senses, and they couldn't find him? Or maybe they weren't looking for him…but the only way that would happen would be if Derek had told them not to. Stiles shivered as a late fall breeze cut through his hoodie, which he pulled tighter around him. Would Derek do that though? The only way Scott at least wouldn't be looking for him would be if he thought Stiles was safe…or if he was wrapped up with Allison. But Stiles was pretty sure his safety still beat out sexy times with Allison on Scott's list of priorities- at least by a smidge.

So they must think he's safe, which doesn't make sense. Unless Derek told them that he was.

Which he didn't think Derek would do…but he _also_ hadn't thought Derek would kiss him back...

So really Stiles was clearly not the expert in what Derek would and would not do.

It was really dark, and getting colder, and Stiles had absolutely no idea where he was. He also didn't have his phone, so really, this was getting to be more and more like a scene from some low budget slasher film. He was hoping that's where the similarities ended though, because he really had no intention of being murdered in the forest. Stiles sighed and looked around him, picking out a big tree and clearing the leaves away from the dirt around the base of it. He might as well try to conserve his energy, because he sure as hell wasn't going to get any less lost in the middle of the night, so he sat down and leaned against the tree behind him, pulling his hood up and crossing his arms as he did. Hopefully his wolfy friends would get it together before his creepy stalker friend from earlier did.

**Derek**

He shouldn't have left him out there alone. At the time it had made sense but…he should have had more control over himself. Should have made sure Stiles got back safely. He tried to shake off his feelings of dread and guilt to focus on the task at hand, running his hands back and forth through his hair anxiously.

"Has anybody heard from him?" His words came out like a growl, deep and harsh, and the pack looked at him with accusing eyes.

"Derek, he was supposed to be with you. Why isn't he with you?" Scott was sweating and on the edge of having some sort of freak-out, Derek could hear his heartbeat speeding up and his breathing becoming uneven.

"Scott- calm down. He was fine when I found him, I made sure he was okay", Derek flushed at the memory of just how 'okay' Stiles had been, and then rushed to get past the subject, "then I tried to track the stalker's scent. He should have gotten here a while ago, so _has anybody heard from him?_" He'd been trying to appear calm and collected, like an alpha should be, but his eyes flashed red as he asked them for a second time.

Lydia, cool and collected as ever, met his glare with one of her own. "If we had heard from him, we wouldn't be here worrying about the two of you. Now you're back, and we hear you left Stiles in the woods alone, after he was being followed by some random creeps, and you're angry at _us_? I am holding you personally responsible if anything happened to him. And I may not be a werewolf, but believe me when I tell you my bad side is not a place you want to get to know _Derek._"

His teeth had grown sharper as she spoke, and a growl rumbled in his chest as he stared her down, but the gazes of the rest of the pack clearly echoed her sentiments. If Stiles was hurt, it would be his fault. Derek took a few breathes to calm himself, and looked at the clock on the wall- it was getting late. "He's fine. We're going to find him. Scott, take Allison home and stay with her, Jackson do the same for Lydia. If these guys are going after a human we have to make sure the others in our pack are safe. Isaac, go check up on Danny and make sure he's all right, Boyd go check the school and see if our visitors left any hints behind, and Erica go to Stiles' house and see if Stiles has been there. When you all are done wait in Stiles' room in case he gets back or the strangers try to make a move to take him- I think Stiles is probably somewhere in the woods" _if they don't have him_ "so I'm going to go find him. Call if you find anything, and I'll let you all know when Stiles is safe."

With that, Derek turned around and lunged out the door, shifting as he flew through the air. He ran to the spot that he'd left Stiles, shrugging off some of his werewolf features as he stood and looked around. He could still smell the faint scent of their combined arousal, and he felt a tug in his lower abdomen muscles as he remembered the feeling of their lips crushed together, and the heat of their breath mixing, and how _badly _he had just wanted to sink his teeth into the kid's neck and pound into him until Stiles' cheeks were red and his back was arched and….STOP. He needed to stop thinking about it, already he was hard and he needed to be concentrating on where Stiles had gone when Derek had left. There- he caught a whiff of Stiles' scent, and saw the disturbed underbrush from where Stiles had walked off after he'd been left alone. Away from the road, and away from their den, he'd walked straight towards the middle of the forest. Derek didn't smell or see anything to indicate the presence of anybody else, so Stiles had most likely just gotten disoriented…_and whose fault was that_? His conscience was not happy with him, and the twinges of guilt were getting stronger. He needed to find Stiles soon, it was cold and dark, and he probably wasn't the only one looking for the boy. He followed the scent deeper into the woods, becoming more and more anxious as the scent grew stronger, but having to move slowly in case of a trap. Finally, he caught a glimpse of red against a big tree up ahead, and quickly ran over to it.

**Stiles**

He'd tried to stay alert. I mean, some creepy dude was stalking him, and he was alone in the middle of the woods at night without any means of communication- who could sleep during that? Well apparently Stiles could, as his head got heavier and heavier as the minutes passed in dark silence. He didn't remember falling asleep, just as he didn't remember anybody finding him, but the next semi-coherent thought he had was that he was being carried. His head was leaning against a warm, and very hard, chest, and there were arms encircling his body and holding him close as though he was a baby. That feeling along with a glimpse of Derek's face was all he got before he was sleeping again, exhausted from his night. At the time, he thought that it was part of his dream, it wouldn't be the first dream he'd had about Derek holding him…but he woke up when Derek laid him down on the couch. Stiles' eyes fluttered open and he took in his surroundings, confused and disoriented as the night's events rushed back into his head. Derek had his back to Stiles, and had his phone against his ear. He was talking softly to somebody and when he hung up and glanced back at the couch, Stiles was still staring at him. He had some things to discuss with the wolf-man, and the creepy stalker guy was not on the top of his list.

The two of them had a few other things, hopefully better things, to talk about.

"Derek…"

So I clearly suck at updating when I tell you I will...soo...it will be soon! That's all I'm saying! Thanks for following and reading and reviewing I love you all 3


	5. Chapter 5

**Derek**

"Derek…"

Stiles voice came out hushed and gravelly from sleep, making Derek think about how great it would feel to be waking up draped over his slender body-a thought that he quickly banished from his head because he needed to focus on the problems at hand. He had just gotten off the phone with Scott, and had told all the pack members to settle down where they were for the night and keep their guard up for anything suspicious. He turned to face Stiles, looking down at the pale, gangly teen whose groggy eyes were trying to focus up at him.

"Derek, are we going to talk about the woods?" Stiles looked at him intently, not showing whether he was for or against the idea, but clearly expecting an answer.

"Look Stiles, I shouldn't have left you in the woods. I meant to take you back myself but then that whole joke with the kissing got the better of me. .." He trailed off without voicing an actually apology, but the suddenly stiff look on Stiles' face made it clear that the kid thought Derek regretted it. Good. That would make it easier to forget, right? Although looking at Stiles was not letting him forget it at all- in fact it was currently replaying in his head for the hundredth time that night, so Derek let his gaze drift slightly into the space over Stiles' shoulder. He had to say something to make it go back to normal- it was safer for everybody, him, the pack, and especially Stiles.

"Stiles, forget about it. You were high on adrenaline- you would've kissed anyone- and for me it was just instinct." _What a lie._

Stiles was biting the inside of his cheek and looked like he was about to say something when Derek's phone beeped loudly in his hand- he glanced at it and Erica's name flashed on the screen with a bright "SOS" message.

"Stay here. Don't move. I have to go help Erica."

As soon as he said Erica's name Stiles' face pinched up and his mouth wrenched into something between a smirk and a grimace, "of course you do- tell your ladylove she should 'try on something a little less desperate'." He said it like he was repeating something from memory, and looked away when Derek's eyebrow raised in question.

He didn't have time to stay and dispute with Stiles, not when his pack was in danger, but he was confused as to why Erica was now his "love" and Stiles wasn't making eye contact…why the fuck should he care? This is why he had gotten so good at staying away. Because it was easier for everybody involved. Still, he definitely did not want Stiles to think that he and Erica were involved in some way, because of…reasons.

"Stay." He repeated once more, glancing hastily at Stiles before he leapt out the door and quickly shifted as he sniffed the air, dashing to Stiles' house where Erica was fighting a group of 5 hunters. It wasn't until the next night that it even occurred to him that something about the scent had been…wrong.

**Stiles**

He'd been stupid to think that the kiss meant anything at all to Derek. He knew he was being stupid, but he still needed to hear it from Derek himself, and he definitely had. Of course it had been his stupid wolfy instincts. He let his face go blank though, because he didn't want Derek to see that he was hurt. He'd had a huge crush on the monster man for a couple of years, and it wasn't like he'd been hiding it. Stiles had flirted awkwardly with witty banter and made an effort to show Derek how useful he was. He stared, practically drooled, blushed, and did anything he could to be in Derek's presence. To the point where Erica had cornered him at school to say that it was getting a little pitiful.

"Look sweetie, I think it's adorable that you are crushing on our main man, but it's clearly a one-sided thing, so I think it's time for you to try on something a little less desperate. I know it sounds harsh honey, but really we don't want a one sided thing messing up the pack dynamic right? Plus you deserve to be happy and with somebody who can talk and keep up with you, because Derek is tall, dark, and handsome, but he comes with a side of broody and mopey. You are just too human to deal with all of his…wolf."

With that Erica had looked him up and down and sauntered away, then pretended it had never happened. Stiles had tried to blow it off, but had found himself thinking about their interaction because no matter how much Stiles tried to avoid thinking about something it pretty much always came up when he was attempting to sleep. That was when Stiles had no choice but to replay the encounter over and over and wonder what Erica would know about dealing with Derek's wolf. She was the only girl that Derek had turned, and she was blond and bitchy…maybe Derek had a type? And even though she was bitchy, she was usually pretty alright to be around, which made her a step up from Derek's last conquest. That should make Stiles happy right? That Derek was happy and this time his happiness wasn't based on lies? That's what he told himself anyway, every night when he was trying to fall asleep.

Of course that didn't change the way Stiles felt, but he'd been stupid to act on it. So stupid. Kissing Derek had probably been the stupidest thing Stiles had done in a while, and that was saying something, but it had happened and Derek had kissed him back! He had let himself hope the tinniest bit, and was realizing that an actual let down hurt way more than the first one. Especially when right after that let down Derek said he had to go help _Erica._

"Of course you do- tell your ladylove she should 'try on something a little less desperate'."

He wasn't being rational and he knew that, but for just a couple seconds he wanted to forget about werewolves and all the other shit that goes bump in the night; he wanted to wallow and be bitter, just for a little bit. Maybe cry and eat some ice cream, and complain to Scott, and just be mad at everyone.

"Stay." Derek had growled, before sprinting out the door- features already wolfing out and eyes glowing bright red.

Stiles didn't really feel like staying though, because being around everything reminding him and smelling like Derek was not at all conducive to his self-mandated mourning period. He needed to get back to his own house and bed before he would let himself cry, because he wanted to be strong enough to do that at least-wait until he was far away from here. He hunted around for a pad of paper somewhere, and of course there was nothing to be found. Because why would a werewolf ever need to write something down?

He grabbed a flier for a pizza place and the sharpie that was hanging next to the chore list on the wall (he had gotten a little tired of the bathroom in the den being disgusting. Seriously just because most of the pack changed into animals sometimes didn't mean they should be living like animals!), and quickly jotted down a note.

_Can't stay here right now, and I don't need you to protect me. I need some time to myself so leave me alone. –Stiles_

He put his note down on the little coffee table, and looked around the den sadly, wishing not for the first time that his life was a little less complicated. With a sigh he pulled his hood up over his head, and shoved his hands in his pockets- time for a long walk home- and trudged out the door.

He may have kind of slightly forgotten that he was being stalked by a creepy stalker dude. I mean, there was a lot for Stiles to process, and he was a little overwhelmed.

Creepy stalker friend hadn't forgotten about him though, that's for sure. Not even half a minute after he stepped out of the house he heard a voice in the dark, "that's him", and thought he might have recognized it. He didn't have much time to process though because rough hands grabbed him from behind, and a damp and sickly sweet smelling rag was shoved in his face. His last thought as his vision faded was "awesome, because my day would not be complete without a little bit of chloroform."

Then everything went black.

NOTE: so sorry that this took so long guys! I was dealing with my anxiety issues all last week and just didn't have it in me to finish the chapter XP I will get the next chapter up a lot quicker I promise cuz I know I ended on a cliff hanger! I love all of you and I appreciate all the follows and favorites, and I love reviews!


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